Distracted driving, which includes everything from cell phone use to talking to kids in the backseat, was a factor in 217 of the 570 fatal crashes occurring in 2016, according to latest report released in January. In 2016, 602 people were killed, an increase of 40 fatalities from 2015.

Driving while intoxicated, which includes alcohol and drugs was a major factor in 151 crashes, according to State Police. The number of intoxicated drivers involved in fatal crashes increased in 2016 to 130 drivers from 90 in 2015. Unsafe speed was a distant third, contributing to 79 crashes in 2016, the report said.

But getting drivers to realize the safety hazard and to change what they do behind the wheel is difficult, said police and safety experts.

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Joe Warner | South Jersey Times

The problem

While handheld cell phones and texting are the usual suspects, distracted driving is any activity that takes your mind off the road, said safety experts and law enforcement officials.

“Distracted driving can be a number of different things, it’s not just texting or talking on cell phones,” said Sgt. Jeffrey Flynn, a State Police spokesman. “It can be anything that takes your attention away from driving, yelling at the kids, changing the radio station or putting on make-up.”

Rubbernecking at a roadside crash is a big distraction that sometimes causes other minor crashes on the same highway, he said.

“Accidents are attention grabbers,” he said.

Distracted driving crashes are also on the rise since traffic volume increased after the economy recovered, said Pam Fischer, former State Division of Highway Traffic Safety director. Traffic volume has been on the rise, she said. A national record for traffic volume was set in 2016.

Drivers have to be aware of their own behavior and change it, safety experts said.

“I think we need to go back to basics, making sure people understand basic driver safety,” said Cathleen Lewis, AAA Northeast spokeswoman. “We need to focus on education and awareness when it comes to driver behavior.”

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Subaru photo

The hands-free misconception

Drivers often don’t realize conversations are just as distracting whether they’re using a hands-free phone or in-dash system or talking to a passenger in the vehicle, experts said.

Drivers can't assume in-dash infotainment systems are less districting than a handheld phone, Lewis said. A 2017 AAA study of 30 in-car systems found them all to be distracting, especially if they are complicated to use.

“Distraction is a growing issue and in-vehicle systems often give drivers the false sense that they are safer, when in fact studies show the cognitive distraction is the same or greater,” Lewis said. “We need to stop focusing on what sort of device it is, and focus on the driver behavior. You should not drive distracted."

AAA Video

The myth of multitasking

Drivers cannot safely multitask behind the wheel, according to experts and there are studies to back them up. That's why drivers, pedestrians and cyclists need to stop using technology while traveling, experts said

“We have a problem with people staying focused,” Fischer said. “We shouldn’t do anything in the car, while walking on the street or while bicycling, except that thing. We should put away the technology.”

A different University of Utah and AAA study used road tests to study distracted drivers who were doing one of eight tasks while driving to measure distraction. A surprise result was the study found using a hands-free phone proved to be as distracting as using a handheld phone.

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S.P. Sullivan | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Fighting distracted driving: Enforcement

Police and safety experts cite the familiar “Three E’s” of education, engineering and enforcement used to combat safety problems.

“If they see a violation, they will conduct a motor vehicle stop and they may issue a summons or a warning,” he said.

Last year, police wrote 61,872 summons statewide for violating the hands-free cell phone law, according to the state judiciary. Over the last five years, the most summons issued for that violation were 89,747 tickets written in 2014. The lowest amount in the last five years were 53,832 written in 2016.

“But it’s not all about writing tickets,” Flynn said. “You can’t write tickets to get out of the situation. Drivers have to be aware of their own behavior and eliminate bad practices.”